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After 13 years and more than 1.6 million miles on the road, a Grovetown man was named truck driver of the year by a national trucking company.

National Carriers, Inc., which operates throughout the continental United States, honored James ‘‘Randy’’ Barnett as its driver of the year at a Dallas banquet March 8.Barnett said in his 13 years with the company, he’s never turned down any load, and has driven across 48 states.

Runners, walkers and good-deed-doers are invited to the Just Cure It event at Blanchard Woods Park on Saturday. Hosted by the Evans Fitness Club, net proceeds of the road race will benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

The race, a choice of 5K or 10K, starts at 8 a.m. and participants are encouraged to arrive no later than 7:45 a.m.

Despite the distances, Marcus Larry, a coordinator of the race, said everyone is encouraged to register because the race is designed for runners of all kinds.

The Columbia County school board voted 4-1 Tuesday to approve a $177 million budget that includes a tax increase that will amount to roughly $40 per $100,000 in assessed property value.

District 3 board member Mike Sleeper was the lone vote against the recommendation by Superintendent Charles Nagle. Sleeper also voted against the proposal last month, when he said he would have preferred the school system consider furloughing employees for two days and “go from there.”